After Storm, No Power, Still, for Some in Oklahoma  12/19/07 

Oklahoma's utility companies, reinforced with teams from around the county including Georgia, expect to restore service to most of their customers  either today or Thursday. The company that provides electricity to this town 30 miles north of Tulsa estimated that 99 percent of its customers would be back on-line by Christmas.

The crews, working 13-hours shifts, have restored power to all but 37,209 homes and businesses. Utility officials said power cannot be restored to some structures until the customers repair damage to connections where electrical service enters a home or business. 

Oklahoma was hardest hit by the storm that struck the Midwest and Northeast last week. In Kansas, where six deaths were blamed on the storm, about 24,000 customers remained without power Tuesday.

The two-day ice storm caused 27 deaths, the Oklahoma Medical Examiner's office said. Of those, 16 perished in traffic accidents, eight in fires, two from carbon monoxide fumes and one from hypothermia.

Meanwhile, overnight temperatures in the state in the past week have dipped into the teens.

Many residents have a new problem to rival dwindling temperatures: dwindling bank accounts. Some have spent their money to stay in hotels, thinking power at home would be restored within a day or two, or depleted their funds by stocking up before the storm on food that has now spoiled.

"We've had people using generators who ran out of money for fuel to operate the generators," said Vince Hernandez, chairman of the American Red Cross of Central Oklahoma.

Hundreds of people found a place to sleep and hot meals over the weekend at a temporary shelter established at the Cox Convention Center in downtown Oklahoma City.

Bush approves Expanded Federal Disaster Relief for Seven Oklahoma Counties 12/18/07

President Bush approved a major disaster declaration Tuesday for Tulsa County and six other Oklahoma counties, expanding the type of federal assistance they can receive in the wake of recent ice storms.

Last week Bush approved all 77 counties in the state for an emergency declaration, which is a more limited action in that it provides assistance only for debris removal and emergency protective measures.

He said the new declaration for the seven counties expands federal assistance to include work on road systems and bridges, water control facilities, public buildings and contents, public utilities and facilities such as parks.

Federal funds are available to state and eligible local governments and certain private nonprofit organizations for certain work.

Henry said 13 or 14 more counties could be added to the new list by week’s end.

He is expected to submit another request to cover individual assistance, and residents and business owners who have uninsured ice storm damage.

“Individual assistance, if you look at the track record, is much more difficult to obtain, but I feel that we have a good case to warrant at putting that forward,” Governor Sullivan said.

“I am going to work very hard to try to secure that.”